News

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Young PR Pros joins the FIR Podcast Network

We’re proud to announce that Young PR Pros is the latest podcast to join the FIR Podcast Network. Introduced in 2012 by Kristine D’Arbelles and Julia Kent, Young PR Pros covers a range of topics of interest to those at the early stages of their careers in PR and communications, from job hunting skills (like building resumes and interview tips) to the state of PR and communications and how young PR professionals can shape the industry’s future.

As the show’s popularity has grown, D’Arbelles and Kent have been invited to universities and communication events across Ottawa to speak about building a career in PR. Listeners tune into the podcast from across Canada and around the world, including the U.S., Australia, and India.

Listen here as Kristine and Julia tell you a little about what to expect from Young PR Pros:

We’re thrilled to introduce Kristine and Julia to the FIR community!

About your hosts

Kristine D’Arbelles Kristine D’Arbelles works for the Canadian Automobile Association as Manager of Public Affairs. There is never a dull moment in her day, whether it is media interviews, managing the CAA National Twitter account or managing a new project to keep Canadians safe on the road.

During her spare time she builds relations with IABC Ottawa members as the Vice-President of Membership on the board. She also helps impaired speed skaters in their endeavors to one day make it to the Paralympics. She does so as the Director for the Impaired Speed Skating Association of Canada (ISSAC), a not-for-profit that empowers impaired speed skaters and provides funds for training, travel and equipment expenses for Canadian impaired skaters.

Julia Kent is a communications and marketing professional in Ottawa, originally from Halifax. A graduate of Carleton’s journalism program, she is experienced in broadcast journalism, public speaking, event management, social media, marketing, communications, proposal and web writing.
Julia is the communications chair on the executive council for the Carleton University Alumni Association, the Ottawa chapter president of the Halifax Grammar School Alumni Association and the former industry relations manager for IABC Ottawa.

In her free time, Julia writes for her food blog, reads for her book club and plays competitive soccer.

As always, we’re grateful to Effective Edge for the design of FIR Podcast Network album art.

Tuesday, August 05, 2014

FIR Live returns with panel on language translation

FIR Live returns on Thursday, August 14, with an hour-long panel discussion on the challenges of communicating in multiple languages online. The web demands speed in publishing content, but if your markets include multiple languages, translation can keep you from posting quickly. Among the many problems technology has tackled, translation remains one that still requires time and expertise.

If you have specific questions about language translation in the PR and communication contexts, be sure to share it on the FIR Podcast Community on Google+, or leave it as a comment to this post, so we can raise it during the discussion.

We’re still working on fleshing out the panel, but so far our guests include…

Renato Beninatto, chief marketing officer for language translation company Moravia. He is the co-founder of the first market research company focusing on language services. He was president and currently serves as an adviser to the European Language Industry Association is is a board member of Translators without Borders.

Iris Orriss, head of localization for Facebook, is also a board member at Translators without Borders. Formerly director of the business platform division international team at Microsoft, she brings more than a decade of localization-related engineering and managerial experience to her work.

Wednesday, July 09, 2014

Media Bullseye Roundtable joins the FIR Podcast Network

We here at the FIR Podcast Network are excited to announce the latest addition to our lineup of shows: the Media Bullseye Roundtable.

Longtime listeners may remember the Roundtable, which we referenced frequently on The Hobson & Holtz Report. Each week, the show’s host joined a guest co-host to discuss three communication-related stories from the previous week. Guest hosts included thought leaders like Doug Haslam and Bryan Person.

The Roundtable—produced by longtime FIR sponsor CustomScoop—was suspended a couple years back for various reasons, but CustomScoop CEO Chip Griffin has revived it. The first shows of the reborn podcast have included Sarah Santucci of SMS strategies talking about PR spam, social media advertising, and oversight of marketing activities; and Doug Haslam digging into PR data, metrics, and audiences. The first new episode found Chip reunited with former CustomScoop executive Jen Phillips.

Beginning with the episode planned for next Tuesday, July 15, the Roundtable will become part of the FIR Podcast Network. You’ll be able to get it through our “Everything” feed (which delivers every FIR Podcast Network episode to you) or through a dedicated feed just for the Roundtable. It’ll also be available through all the various podcast directories, including iTunes.

We hope you’ll join us in welcoming Chip and the Roundtable to the FIR Podcast Network!

Thursday, May 08, 2014

FIR Live returns with IABC’s 2014 class of Fellows

The International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) has announced that five members will join the class of Fellows, the highest honor the association bestows on its members. Tomorrow at 2 p.m. EDT (11 a.m. PDT, 7 p.m. UK), all five will join FIR co-host Shel Holtz for the a session of FIR Live.

The 2014 class of Fellows includes…

John Deveney, ABC, Sr. Counsel, Deveney Communication

Tamara Gillis, ABC, Ph.D, Professor, Elizabethtown College

George McGrath, Principal, McGrath Business Communications

D. Mark Schumann, ABC, senior vice president, The Segal Group

Jennifer Wah, ABC, principal, Forwords Communication

Brad Whitworth, ABC, IABC Fellow, will also participate in the free-ranging conversation about the state of communication and the meaning of the Fellow designation.

The conversation will be held on a Google+ Hangout on Air, which you can view live on The FIR YouTube channel. Afterwards, the session will be available as a YouTube video (which we’ll post to the FIR website) and as an audio file distributed via the usual FIR feeds.

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Igloo Software joins FIR as our latest sponsor

Please join us in welcoming Igloo Software as the latest FIR Podcast Network sponsor. Igloo, which offers a web-based platform for collaborating at work, will join Ragan Communications and CustomScoop as sponsors of The Hobson and Holtz Report.

Through the Igloo platform, employees can share files, get (and share) answers, solve problems, locate information and expertise, and tap into the collective knowledge of the company’s customers, partners and peers, from wherever they are.

For up to 10 people, Igloo is free, with per-user pricing after that. Gamification, social analytics and other state-of-the-art elements are built into the platform, which can be customized to reflect your organization’s image. Companies using Igloo’s intranet software include Kimberly-Clark and International Data Corporation.

The company is headquartered in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.

As always, we strive to identify sponsors whose products and services are relevant to the FIR community. We’re confident we’ve achieved that goal with the addition of Igloo to the Hobson and Holtz Report. Please show them your support by checking out the site and seeing what they have to offer.

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Introducing “FIR B2B” with Paul Gillin and Allan Schoenberg

How do B2B communicators evaluate and integrate the changes happening from digital media? What are the top brands doing to maintain marketing and sales leadership? Who are the people shaping the ideas and thoughts around B2B brands and marketing ideas?

If you think B2B social marketing is just a minor variation on the practices that work in consumer markets, then a new podcast added to the FIR Podcast Network will show you otherwise.

Our new podcast is FIR B2B, debuting this week and next, then continuing every other week. Hosted by Paul Gillin and Allan Schoenberg, FIR B2B will cover the latest news in B2B communications, interview practitioners at innovative companies, and present weekly ideas and tips for making the most of online and in-person conversations. Paul is a veteran B2B journalist and co-author of the 2011 book, Social Marketing to the Business Customer; Allan is the London-based Executive Director of Corporate Communications at CME Group. Both are past guests on FIR.

A podcast focused on B2B marketers and ideas is long overdue. FIR has long covered B2B topics, but B2B companies were actually some of the first movers in social media and this market continues to evolve and shift due to technology. Companies like Sun, Microsoft and IBM were blogging years before blogs went mainstream and with B2B decision cycles longer there’s an intense need for dealing with data and information at all stages of the buying process.

If you have ideas for topics you’d like to listen to and covered, we’d love to hear from you - join the conversation and leave your comments in the FIR Podcast Community on Google+.

Paul Gillin is a veteran technology journalist and a thought leader in new media. Since 2005, he has advised marketers and business executives on strategies to optimize their use of social media and online channels to reach buyers cost-effectively. He is a popular speaker who is known for his ability to simplify complex concepts using plain talk, anecdotes and humor. He is the co-author of Social Marketing to the Business Customer (2011), the first book devoted entirely to B2B social media marketing.

Allan Schoenberg is based in London and responsible for managing the international media relations, issues management and brand communications for CME Group, the world’s leading and most diverse financial marketplace. He was instrumental in launching the company’s social media activity in 2007 and continues to lead its social strategy and online community engagement. He has more than 20 years of experience in B2B communications, including his work for Accenture, Edelman Worldwide and Fleishman Hillard.

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

“AMP Up Your Social Media” joins the FIR Podcast Network

The FIR Podcast Network is pleased to announce the addition of a podcast on social media marketing that will begin in late January 2014. Presenter Glenn Gaudet explains…

What is the role of social media in marketing? How do companies take advantage of this fast growing medium? What strategies do leading practitioners use to get results? What do industry insiders see coming up on the radar? How do companies engage stakeholders to be part of their social media marketing efforts?

I’m Glenn Gaudet. I am the president and founder of GaggleAMP. I have been engaged in and driving enterprise marketing efforts for over 20 years. I also wrote the book, Connection, Community & Conversation: Making Social Media Work for Business. I’ve held positions from product marketing manager to CMO to strategy consultant. This has given me the experience to go deep with social media professionals and ask the questions that marketers want answered.

AMP Up Your Social Media was launched in October of 2013 as a weekly podcast. I am thrilled to be able to now bring the show to the FIR Podcast Network. Since 2005, FIR has been the gold standard for bringing relevant and timely industry knowledge to the professionals in PR and marketing roles. Adding a show dedicated to social media marketing to the line up is a powerful complement.

As a long time fan of FIR, I am honored to be part of the mix. With the FIR Podcast Network as our distribution hub, AMP Up Your Social Media will continue to drive the thought leadership discussions around corporate social media use as part of the marketing mix.

Please join me in exploring existing and new ways to leverage social media marketing.

About Your Host

Glenn Gaudet is the President & Founder of GaggleAMP and author of the book, Connection, Community & Conversation: Making Social Media Work for Business. Gaudet brings over 20 years of comprehensive experience in both strategic and product marketing for technology and media companies ranging from startup to $1 billion in sales. He has delivered results in both marketing technology as well as using marketing technology to gain results.

Prior to GaggleAMP, Gaudet was the Chief Marketing Officer at two different companies including Pulvermedia, an integrated media company that specialized in the voice and video industries. As CMO, Gaudet was responsible for all aspects of branding as well as marketing for the entire portfolio which included event, online and print products.

Gaudet has spoken to audiences around the world on leveraging technology in their business infrastructure. He received his undergraduate degree in Business with a major in Marketing from Babson College. He pursued his graduate degree in Information and Telecommunication Systems from Johns Hopkins University.

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